Gov.-Elect Youngkin Picks Trump EPA Chief To Head Department Of Natural Resources

RICHMOND, VA — Virginia Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin selected Andrew Wheeler, who led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under President Donald Trump, to serve as his Secretary of Natural Resources, the governor’s transition team announced Wednesday.

Also on Wednesday, Youngkin announced plans to replace Department of Environmental Quality Director David Paylor with wetland restoration firm executive Michael Rolband.

Wheeler, a former coal industry lobbyist, took over as EPA administrator after Scott Pruitt resigned in July 2018 in the face of numerous ethics investigations. Wheeler had worked as a lobbyist for Murray Energy, the largest privately owned coal firm in the United States, prior to joining the EPA.

“Virginia needs a diverse energy portfolio in place to fuel our economic growth, continued preservation of our natural resources, and a comprehensive plan to tackle rising sea levels,” Youngkin said in a statement Wednesday. “Andrew and Michael share my vision in finding new ways to innovate and use our natural resources to provide Virginia with a stable, dependable, and growing power supply that will meet Virginia’s power demands without passing the costs on to the consumer.”

Following the November election for governor, Wheeler was appointed to Youngkin’s transition team, E&E News reported.

During his campaign for governor, Youngkin expressed skepticism that humans are the primary cause of climate change. He also opposes the Virginia Clean Economy Act, a 2020 law that seeks to transition the state’s electric grid to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Youngkin’s choice of Wheeler to head the Department of Natural Resources drew protests from environmental groups.

“Youngkin’s pick for Secretary of Natural Resources is simply unacceptable. As head of EPA under former President Trump, Wheeler did nothing more than cater to corporate polluter interests time and time again, putting their welfare ahead of our environment and Americans’ health,” Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, said in a statement Thursday.

“This is hands down the most extreme nomination for an environmental post in Virginia’s history and the absolute worst pick that the Governor-elect could make,” Town said.

As for his plan to replace Paylor with Rolband, Youngkin said Paylor "should be commended for his decades of service to DEQ. He has been an invaluable public servant.”

Rolband founded Wetland Studies and Solutions Inc. to help industry and developers comply with the Clean Water Act, Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act and local environmental regulations. He later established the nonprofit Resource Protection Group, which has awarded more $5.4 million in grants to advance the science of wetland and steam restoration.